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State House and Senate to propose anti-abortion bills criminalizing the procedure

The state legislature is set to take up several bills Tuesday that would ban and criminalize certain abortion procedures, but the plans making their way through the State House and Senate are aimed at essentially doing the same thing.

LANSING, Mich. — The state legislature is set to take up several bills Tuesday that would ban and criminalize certain abortion procedures, but the plans making their way through the State House and Senate are aimed at essentially doing the same thing.

The bills being discussed in both chambers would ban the procedure "dilation and evacuation" also known as D and E.

It is the most frequently used abortion procedure during the second trimester.

According to the State Health Department, nearly 1,800 D and E abortions were performed in Michigan in 2017.

People against the procedure call it "barbaric."

Those against the bills say D and E is safer for the woman and has fewer complications than other abortion procedures.

The bills being discussed would also make D and E abortion a crime in Michigan.

Any doctor convicted of performing the procedure could face up to two years in prison.

The legislation is expected to run into roadblocks as Governor Gretchen Whitmer has vowed to veto any bills that reach her desk that restrict access to abortion.

Several other bills in both chambers from lawmakers who support abortion rights have been introduced that would repeal a 1931 law that makes abortion illegal in Michigan.

The legislation was introduced to ensure abortion remains available in the state if the U.S. Supreme Court overturns "Roe v. Wade."

Last month Attorney General Dana Nessel said she expects the more conservative high court to overturn Roe someday.

She said if that happens she will never prosecute a woman or doctor for terminating a pregnancy.